Not only could you get pests in your fresh water system with the drain valves open but you will also get dust and who knows what else. Mine will be closed when I finally drain my systems.
reason given: water will collect in the drain above the valve and if it freezes it is in a place to cause the most damage with the least amount of water. will put pink stuff in grey tank, may put stainless steel wool into clean water cap
~dave
2008 Dutchman 28FGS TT
2009 Dodge Ram 1500 4x4
DW: Nora
DD: Silas White German Shepherd / Husky Mix
Mine has a small vent cap that permits drainage. I leave the valves pulled open and the small drain cap unscrewed. I use the camper a lot in winter and don't want the valves to freeze closed. We don't use the toilet, but if thre were an emergency I'd want to be able to dump it.
I saw a tip online a while back where they suggested you leave your drains open to allow for ventilation. The tip also included making a homemade screen out of window screen material. They used an adapter to connect to the open valve and cut the screen material to a slightly larger diameter than the adapter the wrapped it around it. The concept makes sense. That way you don't get any funky smells in there. I mean heaven forbid the black tank have a bad odor.
1999 Dodge Dakota 5.2 Gas Ext Cab Short Bed
1996 Sportsmen 2002 21' Travel Trailer
Dear Wife, two sons (11 months & 4yrs,) and one dog
Nights camped in 2009 (First year): 11
I am a noob too, but I cant imagine that a little water in the tank freezing would cause damage. The risk in freezing is the expansion. If you have a little in the tank, even it if is against the valve, it is just going to expand within the tank. I talked to a very experienced RVer when I was getting setup and he said he has never worried about completely draining his dump tanks and has never had a problem in 20 years. It is just like the water heater - even the manual says a little water in the bottom will not hurt.
Would like to hear if I am wrong (which is entirely possible!)
I can understand the fresh water tank.. the valve is the lowest point of the tank, and the diameter is 2 inch- so I can imagine 1/2 cup of water could freeze and pose a problem with expansion - they gray and black I will place antifreeze in them so should be no problem
Keep them closed but DO put the pink stuff down the drains to help protect the valves. It may or may not be a necessary step, but it certainly can't hurt.
A couple of years ago, I followed someone's recommendation to keep the valves open. I had the rig home, dumped the tanks and winterized, leaving the valves open. We keep our jacks down during the winter to keep some of the weight off the tires. Of course, over the winter, the jacks sometimes settle, so I'd "re-level".
Well...apparently the tanks weren't quite as empty as I had thought and as the level of the rig changed, some remaining liquids found their way down the toward the open valves. In the spring, when I went to get the rig ready for some camping, it was quite apparent that some nasty stuff had leaked out into that bay. Fortunately...it was still partially frozen and hadn't had a chance to get really disgusting. Anyway, cleaned it up and vowed to NEVER do that again.
~Rick
2005 Georgie Boy 3625 DS on a Workhorse W-22 (Class A)
Rick, Gail, 1 girl (12-Angel, Lexi96.org), 1 girl (8), 2 boys (9 & 6).
2001 Honda Odyssey, Demco Aluminator tow bar & tow plate, SMI Silent Partner brake controller.
I close all valves for winter. A little water won't hurt anything. The pipes need to be FULL of water (at least in one area,) which then freezes, before you have to worry. If water has room to expand when it freezes, it is no problem.
Here in SE Ohio, anything that's left open will soon be full of the ^&%@*# ladybugs!
Wayne
* This post was
edited 11/01/09 05:06pm by Empty Nest, Soon *
Wayne & Michelle
2004 Pioneer 19T4
1998 GMC 2500HD, 5.7L, HD 5-speed, 3.73
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